Cambridge, Massachusetts
Pasadena, California
Riverside, California
Berkeley, California
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Posted: 25-Apr-26
Location: Gaithersburg, Maryland
Type: Full-time
Salary: 70,000.00 - 89,000.00
Categories:
Internal Number: A-185454-26
General Description
PREP Research Associate CHIPS Funded Project.
This position is part of the National Institute of Standards (NIST) Professional Research Experience (PREP) program. NIST recognizes that its research staff may wish to collaborate with researchers at academic institutions on specific projects of mutual interest and thus requires that such institutions be the recipients of a PREP award. The PREP program requires staff from a wide range of backgrounds to work on scientific research in many areas. Employees in this position will perform technical work that underpins the scientific research of the collaboration.
Research Title:
Metrology of Materials, Surfaces, and Processes for Semiconductor Advanced Packaging
The work will entail:
We are seeking a highly motivated researcher to advance measurement science for next-generation hybrid advanced packaging. This role will contribute to the development of novel surface and materials metrology methods that enable predictive control of bonding processes and heterogeneous integration. The successful candidate will work within the Nanophotonics project to help establish the quantitative foundations needed for reliable, high-density microelectronic assembly, supporting national efforts to strengthen U.S. leadership in semiconductor manufacturing and advanced packaging technologies.
The main responsibilities are:
- Fabricate Si, SiO2, SiN chips for flip-chip fusion and hybrid bonding experiments.
- Optimize and maintain fabrication processes, including chip handling and cleaning protocols.
- Perform surface and thin film characterization of chips used for flip-chip bonding experiments. Characterization techniques include AFM, optical inspection, IR transmission microscopy, spectroscopic ellipsometry, SEM and others.
- Closely coordinate with teams performing materials characterization, bond strength testing and modeling.
The successful candidate will work in a highly collaborative research environment and have access to state-of-the-art facilities for device fabrication and characterization. The position is available immediately, and the initial appointment is for two years, with the possibility of extension based on performance and availability of funding.
Qualifications
Necessary Qualifications:
- PhD in physics, electrical engineering, materials science, or a related field.
- Significant experience, including process development, in semiconductor device fabrication, including wafer cleaning and handling, lithography mask layout, optical or electron beam lithography, RIE, ICP RIE, PVD, CVD, ALD, wet etching, as well as characterization techniques such as ellipsometry, profilometry, optical microscopy, SEM and AFM.
- Proficiency in programming languages, such as Python, Java or Matlab.
- Excellent communication skills and ability to work effectively in a team.
Desirable Qualifications:
- Experience with flip-chip fusion and/or hybrid bonding processes
- Experience with XPS, UPS, FTIR, Raman, photoluminescence, other relevant modalities of spectroscopy
- Familiarity with silicon electronic, photonic or optoelectronic device processing
- Experience with custom infrared microscopy and optical measurement setups.
- Experience with III-V compound semiconductor process development and device fabrication.
- Experience with optoelectronic (e.g. semiconductor lasers, detectors, multi-functional photonic integrated circuits, etc) device characterization.
- Experience with photonic and optoelectronic device simulation software, such as Lumerical, Tidy3d, or COMSOL.
- US citizenship strongly preferred
Application Instructions
Please upload the following with your application:
- CV/Resume
*Please limit C.V to 3 pages only and ONLY include a valid email address for your contact info. Your resume will not be considered if the following information is included on your CV/resume.
- Self portraits
- Phone number
- Home address/Country
- Citizenship status
- Languages spoken
- Sex/Gender
Privacy Act Statement
Authority: 15 U.S.C. § 278g-1(e)(1) and (e)(3) and 15 U.S.C. § 272(b) and (c)
Purpose: The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) hosts the Professional Research Experience Program (PREP) which is designed to provide valuable laboratory experience and financial assistance to undergraduates, post-bachelor's degree holders, graduate students, master's degree holders, postdocs, and faculty.
PREP is a 5-year cooperative agreement between NIST laboratories and participating PREP Universities to establish a collaborative research relationship between NIST and U.S. institutions of higher education in the following disciplines including (but may not be limited to) biochemistry, biological sciences, chemistry, computer science, engineering, electronics, materials science, mathematics, nanoscale science, neutron science, physical science, physics, and statistics. This collection of information is needed to facilitate the administrative functions of the PREP Program.
Routine Uses: NIST will use the information collected to perform the requisite reviews of the applications to determine eligibility, and to meet programmatic requirements. Disclosure of this information is also subject to all the published routine uses as identified in the Privacy Act System of Records Notices: NIST-1: NIST Associates.
Disclosure: Furnishing this information is voluntary. When you submit the form, you are indicating your voluntary consent for NIST to use of the information you submit for the purpose stated. By applying to a CHIPS-funded PREP opportunity, you also acknowledge that participation in the project requires signing a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) prior to beginning any work.
Salary Range
The referenced salary range represents the minimum and maximum salaries for this position and is based on Johns Hopkins University's good faith belief at the time of posting. Not all candidates will be eligible for the upper end of the salary range. The actual compensation offered to the selected candidate may vary and will ultimately depend on multiple factors, which may include the successful candidate's geographic location, skills, work experience, internal equity, market conditions, education/training and other factors, as reasonably determined by the University.
Total Rewards
Johns Hopkins offers a total rewards package that supports our employees' health, life, career and retirement. More information can be found here: https://hr.jhu.edu/benefits-worklife/.
Equal Opportunity Employer
The Johns Hopkins University is committed to equal opportunity for its faculty, staff, and students. To that end, the university does not discriminate on the basis of sex, gender, marital status, pregnancy, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status or other legally protected characteristic. The university is committed to providing qualified individuals access to all academic and employment programs, benefits and activities on the basis of demonstrated ability, performance and merit without regard to personal factors that are irrelevant to the program involved.
Pre-Employment Information
If you are interested in applying for employment with The Johns Hopkins University and require special assistance or accommodation during any part of the pre-employment process, please contact the HR Business Services Office at jhurecruitment@jhu.edu. For TTY users, call via Maryland Relay or dial 711. For more information about workplace accommodations or accessibility at Johns Hopkins University, please visit accessibility.jhu.edu.
Background Checks
The successful candidate(s) for this position will be subject to a pre-employment background check including education verification.
EEO is the Law:
https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/2023-06/22-088_EEOC_KnowYourRights6.12ScreenRdr.pdf
Vaccine Requirements
Johns Hopkins University strongly encourages, but no longer requires, at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. The COVID-19 vaccine does not apply to positions located in the State of Florida. We still require all faculty, staff, and students to receive the seasonal flu vaccine. Exceptions to the COVID and flu vaccine requirements may be provided to individuals for religious beliefs or medical reasons. Requests for an exception must be submitted to the JHU vaccination registry. This change does not apply to the School of Medicine (SOM). SOM hires must be fully vaccinated with an FDA COVID-19 vaccination and provide proof of vaccination status. For additional information, applicants for SOM positions should visit https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/coronavirus/covid-19-vaccine/ and all other JHU applicants should visit https://covidinfo.jhu.edu/health-safety/covid-vaccination-information/.
The following additional vaccine requirements may apply, depending upon your campus. Please contact the hiring department for more information. The pre-employment physical for positions in clinical areas, laboratories, working with research subjects, or involving community contact requires documentation of immune status against Rubella (German measles), Rubeola (Measles), Mumps, Varicella (chickenpox), Hepatitis B and documentation of having received the Tdap (Tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) vaccination. This may include documentation of having two (2) MMR vaccines; two (2) Varicella vaccines; or antibody status to these diseases from laboratory testing. Blood tests for immunities to these diseases are ordinarily included in the pre-employment physical exam except for those employees who provide results of blood tests or immunization documentation from their own health care providers. Any vaccinations required for these diseases will be given at no cost in our Occupational Health office.
